1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates, in general to skates.
2. Description of the Art
Ice skates, roller skates and, more recently, in-line roller skates have been used by many for enjoyment as well as to play various sports, such as hockey. The recently popular in-line roller skates have also been used by serious hockey players for off season training as well as to play hockey using on a non-ice surface.
In all types of skates, the ice blades, the toe and heel roller skate assemblies, and the in-line assembly containing a plurality of urethane rollers are securely and generally permanently attached to the sole of a skate boot or shoe. This has resulted in the dedicated use of hockey skates, roller skates or in-line roller skates for a single activity or sport.
The advantages of providing such skates with easily attachable and detachable assemblies including ice blades, toe and heel roller assemblies, or an in-line roller assembly, has been noted.
Thus, it would be desirable to provide a skate in which a skate or shoe body is capable of receiving attachments including ice blades, in-line roller assemblies, shoe soles, etc. It would also be desirable to provide a skate in which such attachments can be quickly and easily attached to and removed from the shoe body particularly without the need for a separate tool. It would also be desirable to provide a skate in which such attachments are securely attached to the shoe body without any relative movement in either longitudinal or lateral directions, with respect to the shoe body. Finally, it would be desirable to provide a skate which positions the sole of the skate and therefore the feet of the user as close as possible to the underlying use surface.